1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of safety glasses, and more particularly, to safety glasses attached to headwear.
2. Related Art
The present invention relates to safety helmets or “hard-hats” with attached safety glasses. On construction sites, workers must wear protective gear for their heads and eyes. Safety goggles are typically uncomfortable to wear, especially during hot weather when the air inside goggles can become very hot. Also, wearer's frequently remove their goggles for various reasons such as to wipe sweat out of their eyes or to improve the acuity of their vision. Thus, it is common for safety goggles to be damaged or lost. One solution to this problem is to attach a pair of protective glasses to the bill of the worker's safety helmet. Means for flipping the safety glasses up toward the helmet bill away from the wearer's face allows the wearer to “remove” the glasses without the danger that they will be lost or damaged while not in use.
Existing means for attaching safety glasses to a helmet do not allow for the position of the glasses to be adjusted relative to the user's face. Because every person's face is unique, safety glasses attached at a given point may be too close to one wearer's face and too far away from another. Unfortunately, safety helmets are from time to time struck by other objects. Because existing means for attaching safety glasses are rigid, the shock from such a blow can be transferred from the glasses to the user's face. This is especially problematic when the glasses are too close to the user's face. Similarly, the safety glasses may be struck directly, which can break them or result in the helmet being knocked off.
Issued patents relating to safety glasses attached to headwear are reviewed hereinafter.
Jones (U.S. Pat. No. 2,648,091) discloses a stud and socket snap fastener assembly, which is adapted for use in attaching an eyeshield to the visor of a cap.
Day (U.S. Pat. No. 4,819,274) discloses a detachable eye shield adjustably mounted on a mounting block which is removably engaged in a dovetail groove formed on the central portion of the under side of the visor member of the cap. A shaft member disposed on the upper frame of the eye shield is pivotally snap-engaged in the holder portion of the mounting block whereby the eye shield can be raised up and down relative to the visor member.
Moody (U.S. Pat. No. 4,951,316) discloses a sun visor with eyeshield in which the eyeshield can be positioned, in a positive and secure manner, both up and down and at incremental distances from the wearer's eyes.
Solo (U.S. Pat. No. 5,129,102) discloses a cap with removable flip up and down glasses. The lenses snap into the receiving member and pivot at its two attachment points.
Diaz (U.S. Pat. No. 5,533,207) discloses an eyeglass and cap combination in which eyeglasses downwardly depend from a projecting bill. A pivot device connects the eyeglass frame with the bill whereby the eyeglasses may be positioned between an operative position in front of the eyes or a storage position adjacent to the bill or visor underside. The pivot device includes a frictional detent to maintain the eyeglasses in either one or the two positions.
Ryder (U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,640) discloses a visor and eyeshield combination that allows the wearer to adjust the eyeshield by flipping the eyeshield to a rest position or down to an in-use position. The wearer may also adjust the distance of the eyeshield from the wearer's face.
Thus, there is still a need for an improved safety glasses and safety helmet combination. The present invention addresses these problems with a flexible, shock-absorbing attachment system that can be adjusted vertically and horizontally to better fit individual users. The combination of these features will absorb the shock from a blow to the helmet rather than transmitting it to the safety glasses and wearer's face.